The present invention relates to an air-conditioning register having fins to change the flow direction of air-conditioning air supplied from an air conditioner and delivered into the passenger compartment.
FIGS. 11 and 12 show an example of such an air-conditioning register for a vehicle.
The air-conditioning register includes a downstream fin 82 and an upstream fin 85, which are arranged in an air passage 81 of air-conditioning air A1. The downstream fin 82 includes a downstream body 83 and a downstream fin shaft 84, which each extend in a direction crossing the flow direction of the air-conditioning air A1. The downstream fin 82 is supported to pivot about the downstream fin shaft 84. The upstream fin 85 includes an upstream body 86 and an upstream fin shaft 87, which each extend in a direction crossing both the flow direction and the extending direction of the downstream fin shaft 84. The upstream fin 85 is supported upstream of the downstream fin 82 to pivot about the upstream fin shaft 87. An operation knob 95 (refer to a long dashed double-short dashed line in FIG. 11) is arranged on the downstream body 83 to slide in the extending direction of the downstream body 83.
A cutout 88 is formed for transmitting the sliding movement of the operation knob 95 to the upstream body 86 to pivot the upstream fin 85 about the upstream fin shaft 87. The cutout 88 extends upstream from the downstream edge of the upstream body 86. A transmission shaft 89, which extends along the upstream fin shaft 87, is arranged in the cutout 88. A fork 96 is rotationally coupled to the operation knob 95 with a support shaft 98. The support shaft 98 is press-fitted to the operation knob 95 to be frictionally engaged with the operation knob 95. The fork 96 has a pair of transmission pieces 97, which extends upstream from the operation knob 95 and sandwiches the transmission shaft 89. The upstream body 86 includes two flanges 91 in portions that border the cutout 88. The flanges 91 are located to face each other in the extending direction of the transmission shaft 89. Each flange 91 bulges from opposite sides in the thickness direction of the upstream body 86.
For example, Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 2009-51282 discloses an air-conditioning register with the fork 96, which rotates relative to the operation knob 95 in the above-described manner.
In the above-illustrated air-conditioning register, when the operation knob 95 is operated in a first direction in the thickness direction to pivot the downstream fin 82, the support shaft 98 rotates around the downstream fin shaft 84, and the fork 96 moves along the transmission shaft 89 while maintaining the orientation. If the operation of the operation knob 95 in the first direction continues even after the fork 96 contacts the corresponding flange 91, the angle of the fork 96 in relation to the operation knob 95 changes.
In this state, if the operation knob 95 is operated in a second direction, which is the direction opposite to the first direction in the thickness direction of the operation knob 95, the fork 96 moves along the transmission shaft 89 in the second direction while maintaining the orientation, which has been changed by contacting the corresponding flange 91.
The above-illustrated air-conditioning register can change the angle of the fork 96 with contact between the fork 96 and the flange 91. This allows the cutout 88 to be smaller than that of an air-conditioning register with a fork 96 that does not rotate relative to an operation knob 95. Thus, the likelihood is limited that the cutout 88 will reduce the directionality of air-conditioning air A1, which is defined by the upstream fin 85. In addition, the likelihood is limited that the visible cutout 88 will worsen the appearance.
However, the conventional air-conditioning register changes the angle of the fork 96 with the contact between the fork 96 and the flange 91. When the operation knob 95 is operated in the thickness direction to pivot the downstream fin 82, the transmission piece 97 strongly strikes the flange 91. This may produce a loud tapping noise.